Wasteful people (rant)

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by Amethyst I'm getting petty now, but I dislike paper plates, even without their non-green-ness. Too small, too floppy, have to double them up to keep tomato or BBQ sauce from soaking through, etc.

When I was a kid Mom bought a large stack of bamboo plate holders for paper plates. She entertained a lot and when it was a picnic or something else informal enough for paper plates those went underneath. They lasted for years.

Plastic was mentioned earlier and that's a good example of the collective impact of waste. The plastic one person throws in the trash in a day isn't that much, but look at the size of what we generate as a population. Most plastics aren't as recyclable as you'd like to believe, even if they have that little triangle and you put them in a recycle bin. COVID made things worse with the proliferation of food served in styrofoam containers and the increase in takeout and delivery. I hope we can get back to better habits.

[Badger]

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Originally Posted by Music Lover I mostly laugh when I see people wasting...it's their money. But I did get angry at the BF of wife's daughter one day when we ordered and paid (I paid) for Chinese food. He loaded his plate a foot high, ate half of it and then threw the rest in the garbage He was told that if he ever did that again that he wouldn't be allowed to eat in our house ever again.

Good for you. That is such rude behavior and totally inconsiderate when someone is invited for dinner at your home. If he wasn't sure he would like one of the selections then he should have just take a small amount to taste first. He could always go back for more. He was behaving like so many people on a cruise ship. Disgusting.

I will never forget the days of beans and biscuits so I appreciate and respect having a choice and quantity of food. Today any leftovers are saved for my breakfast or lunch the next day. Food is not to be thrown away.


Cheers!

[sergio]

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Originally Posted by RetiredHappy Maybe he thought the food would taste good but didn't turn out to be his liking? I wouldn't stuff food down if it wasn't any good.

But but but his GF's dad paid for it, as was mentioned 2-3 times! He probably saved a nice $8 on take out Chinese LOL. Awesome way to forge a great relationship with a potential future son-in-law.

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by Badger Good for you. That is such rude behavior and totally inconsiderate when someone is invited for dinner at your home. If he wasn't sure he would like one of the selections then he should have just taken a small amount to taste first. He could always go back for more. He was behaving like so many people on a cruise ship. Disgusting. <snip> Food is not to be thrown away. Cheers!

I totally agree. It was drilled into me by my grandparents, both of whom were overweight because they urged each other to "eat up that last little bit" of food left on the serving platter. They'd been though some tough times. With freezing, stir-frying and careful shopping, I don't waste, either, and am at a healthy weight.

I'd also be horrified at a guest who loaded up his or her plate with food and then discarded half of it. "Take all you want but eat all you take".

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badger Good for you. That is such rude behavior and totally inconsiderate when someone is invited for dinner at your home. If he wasn't sure he would like one of the selections then he should have just take a small amount to taste first. He could always go back for more. He was behaving like so many people on a cruise ship. Disgusting.

Wasting food from a buffet is not just a sin. It also shows that a person has no class, and is most likely of a poor upbringing. It's not different than drawing graffiti. It's destroying valuable things for no good reason.

[sergio]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound Wasting food from a buffet is not just a sin. It also shows that a person has no class, and most likely of a poor upbringing.

If his upbringing was poor, that's not actually the guy's fault. Maybe he started to feel sick. Maybe the food just sucked (we're talking take out Chinese here). There are a million more tactful ways to get the point across without harshly telling him that if he does this again he's not welcome to eat at our house anymore. This is a potential future son-in-law we're talking about here.

[NW-Bound]

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Originally Posted by RetiredHappy Maybe he thought the food would taste good but didn't turn out to be his liking? I wouldn't stuff food down if it wasn't any good.

A savvy person would try a very small portion first. Again, this loading up to throw away shows no class, whether at a host's house or on a cruise ship.

[NW-Bound]

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Originally Posted by sergio If his upbringing was poor, that's not actually the guy's fault. Maybe he started to feel sick. Maybe the food just sucked (we're talking take out Chinese here). There are a million more tactful ways to get the point across without harshly telling him that if he does this again he's not welcome to eat at our house anymore. This is a potential future son-in-law we're talking about here.

Yes, I would find a different way to get the message across.

But a person cannot go on blaming his poor upbringing as an excuse. If he could not get better, it would not be other people's fault for not wanting his company.

[braumeister]

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Originally Posted by Music Lover He loaded his plate a foot high, ate half of it and then threw the rest in the garbage

Unfortunately, I have often seen that in hotels that offer a free breakfast. Sometimes they only eat a little of it, and the food is good (I'm eating there too). Makes me crazy.

[Music Lover]

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Originally Posted by RetiredHappy Maybe he thought the food would taste good but didn't turn out to be his liking? I wouldn't stuff food down if it wasn't any good.

I probably should have been more clear earlier...loading a plate and dumping excess in the garbage is a habit of his. If you're not sure if you'll like something then you only take a little bit then go back for more. Especially when someone else paid for it. And if you're an adult (he's 21) then you should be able to figure out how much you can eat in a sitting. When in doubt, default to taking less. You can always go back for more.

[athena53]

I used to hang out on CruiseCritic a lot and apparently many waiters on the big ships tell kids at the table that they'll bring them something unfamiliar (say, lobster) and if the child tried it and didn't like it they'll take it away and bring something else. Yes, it's VERY good to encourage kids to try something new on a no-risk basis- I do it with my grandchildren all the time and they like a surprising range of foods. They start with a taste from someone else's plate, though. (And now I have to order TWO servings of seaweed salad at their favorite Thai place so there's enough to go around.)

But what happens on a cruise ship to the foods that a kid tries and doesn't like? Does the staff get the remainder or is it thrown out?

[Badger]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound A savvy person would try a very small portion first. Again, this loading up to throw away shows no class.

+1 It also shows a lack of respect for the potential future in-laws who generously invited him into their home and provided a meal. I don't agree with those who make excuses for his indifference to wasteful behavior.


Cheers!

[sergio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NW-Bound Yes, I would find a different way to get the message across. But a person cannot go on blaming his poor upbringing as an excuse. If he could not get better, it would not be other people's fault for not wanting his company.

Someone who was never taught properly is going to have to learn eventually. My upbringing was not great and I had to learn a lot of stuff on my own in college and later in life. I always appreciated when someone was a 'bro' about it, versus calling me out and acting like a wannabe tough guy. Something like "hey man, we're trying to reduce the amount of food we throw away, next time do you mind grabbing smaller plates and getting more as you need it?" in a friendly way while drinking beer is going to go a longer towards maintaining good relations, than threatening to ban someone from the house.

[teetee]

One of my friends reuses the plastic sheets he used to seal the windows during the winter for years. When I suggested him to replace those old windows with the modern vinyl windows, he didn't think it was worth the money and the new windows do not fit the style of the house.

On one hand, he is thrifty, on the other hand, he is wasteful in terms of letting energy go out. He does save money with the plastic method.

[Chuckanut]

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Originally Posted by aja8888 After walking my dog about 3 times per day for the last 5 years, bagging poop has become an art form for me. I use special bags that mask the odor and tie them off with a special knot. It's a skill one can learn in retirement. .

I'll pass on that skill.

I did not work, save and invest for decades so I could pick up dog poop.

[Music Lover]

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Originally Posted by teetee One of my friends reuses the plastic sheets he used to seal the windows during the winter for years. When I suggested him to replace those old windows with the modern vinyl windows, he didn't think it was worth the money and the new windows do not fit the style of the house. On one hand, he is thrifty, on the other hand, he is wasteful in terms of letting energy go out. He does save money with the plastic method.

My house used to have leaky double aluminum sliders (Canadian prairies). I used the plastic window kits every winter and they made a huge difference. I eventually replaced the windows with triple pane vinyl but the energy savings were not really noticeable, although the comfort level was greatly increased.

Windows make up 10% or less of the total wall area so as long as the leaks are plugged, replacing the windows may never pay back financially...especially if you're paying someone to replace them instead of doing it yourself.

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by teetee One of my friends reuses the plastic sheets he used to seal the windows during the winter for years. When I suggested him to replace those old windows with the modern vinyl windows, he didn't think it was worth the money and the new windows do not fit the style of the house. On one hand, he is thrifty, on the other hand, he is wasteful in terms of letting energy go out. He does save money with the plastic method.

I was proud of repairing my pool pump to make it last for decades. It was only when the impeller was so worn out and I had to replace the whole pump that I realized that the worn-out pump efficiency was so poor I was wasting money on electricity all those years. And the new pump ran so quietly compared to the racket that the old one made. Argh! All that noise for nothing.

No, I was not penny-wise pound-foolish, and definitely not wasteful. I was just ignorant.

[Chuckanut]

My home came with double windows. Single pane windows benefit, but the double pane the benefit is minimal at best. I used the plastic sheets for several years, compared energy usage and realized I was doing a lot of work for nothing. From what I have read, single pane windows benefit, but for the double pane windows in my home the benefit is minimal at best.

I could get new windows, but the difference in energy usage - in my climate - is minimal. Using the new windows money for extra insulation in the attic or to purchase a few long sleeve thermal undershirts is a far more efficient use of funds. My Hybrid car cost me an extra $800 in purchase price. The energy savings from that decision far exceeds spending $800 to replace a few windows. And at today's gas prices the hybrid payback is measured in several years, rather than the several decades for windows. Again, in my area's climate. Those of you who live in Frozen Nose Minnesota may have different numbers.

Energy and resource efficiency needs to be viewed as a full-length movie, not a snapshot of one event.

[Car-Guy]

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Originally Posted by NW-Bound Wasting food from a buffet is not just a sin. It also shows that a person has no class, and is most likely of a poor upbringing.

On the other extreme; talk about no class or poor upbringing (or just plain stupid) I've seen people go back to the buffet to get "more food"...(which is fine if you are going to eat it.) However, many don't get another clean plate and just add new food to their dirty plate, (possible cross contamination when using shared serving utensils). That happens a lot....

WARNING - GROSS from my POV

And 100+ times worse at a buffet, (I've seen this happen more than once) the customer will scrape what they didn't eat from their plate back into the community serving bowls.... The first time I saw this, the "guy" dumped what he had not eaten from his personal bowl back into the main large serving bowl.... "Then" he took more. I immediately told the manager what happened and he remove the community serving bowl and contents and replaced it with a new one.

Now is that taking avoiding waste too far or just plain stupid. (Rhetorical)


No buffets for me!

[COcheesehead]

I see waste in our neighborhood, but then I go to the recycling place and see all the folks recycling and it restores my faith in humanity.